Bow Ties are Cool
by lovetheblazer
Summary: Blaine Anderson is exactly the kind of dork who would insist on celebrating National Bow Tie Day (August 28, 2015).


"Mmm, good morning," Kurt mumbles sleepily as he shuffles into the bathroom. Blaine is nearly done with his morning routine, pink cheeked and whistling a cheerful tune as he puts the finishing touches on his hair, the gel already drying to hard shellac impervious to the humid summer heat outside.

He turns and wraps his arms around Kurt's waist, leaning in immediately for a kiss.

"Should probably let me brush my teeth first, I bet I have morning breath," Kurt protests weakly. But Blaine presses on, undeterred, and Kurt melts into the kiss, sucking on Blaine's bottom lip lazily. He hasn't had his morning coffee yet and he's barely awake, but he's got seven years of muscle memory to draw on when it comes to kissing his husband. It's as easy and automatic a process as driving a car is for him, and much, much more pleasurable.

"Hi," Blaine greets him as they break apart.

"Hi yourself," Kurt replies. "You're in a good mood this morning, huh?"

"Of course, why wouldn't I be?" Blaine asks, tilting his head to the side as he studies Kurt.

"Why _would_ you be?" Kurt grumbles. "It's not even 7:00 AM yet and we were up way too late last night listening to Rachel's latest tale of woe. I'm exhausted," he yawns.

"Today's a big day, that's why!" Blaine chirps excitedly. "You didn't forget what today was, did you?" he inquires, slightly accusingly.

Kurt has absolutely no idea what he's referring to, but he knows that tone well enough to pretend otherwise. "No, of course I didn't forget," he replies, as if doing so was unthinkable. Hopefully Blaine will give him a hint or it'll be something that he (or more likely, his assistant) had the good sense to put on his calendar. If not, well... he'll deal with that crisis once he's had a hot shower and coffee and is properly awake.

"Sorry I doubted you," Blaine grins. "I need to get to the theater early today so I can transpose the new songs into a higher key for Little Miss Diva," he explains, rolling his eyes. "There's coffee and muffins in the kitchen though, and I should be home by 6 so we can celebrate properly, okay?"

"Sure honey, have a great day," Kurt tells him, leaning in for one last quick kiss. "I should be off by 5:30 or 6 too, but I'll text you if I'm running late."

Blaine looks in the mirror, straightening his bow tie and smoothing down his hair one final time. "Sounds good, love you," he adds.

"Love you too," Kurt says, waving goodbye as Blaine hoofs it out of the bathroom.

The second Kurt hears the apartment door slam shut behind his husband, he's rushing back to the bedroom and snagging his phone off the bedside table. He scrolls through his calendar, confirming that there are no events scheduled for tonight, not even dinner reservations. He rubs a frustrated hand over his face as he wracks his brain. He knows it isn't Blaine's birthday, their wedding anniversary, or even the anniversary of the first time they met, because he makes the effort to remember the big, important holidays. No matter how wrapped up they both get in work, Kurt and Blaine haven't fallen into the forgetful, neglectful husband trap yet, and they are determined not to. They won't be another shameful statistic. Yes, their decision to get married the second time was a bit rushed, but it was also right for them. It's not something Kurt has regretted, even for a moment, and he can't imagine ever regretting what he currently regards as the best decision he's ever made.

The problem is that Blaine has a tendency to be an overly sentimental sap. If Kurt was a hopeless romantic back in high school, the Blaine of today is ten times worse. He's just so infuriatingly... thoughtful, forever remembering Kurt's favorite things, frequently sending him flowers just because or snapping up the brooch Kurt pointed out in a fashion magazine months before his birthday or Christmas. Even his proposal had been a grand, over-the-top spectacle that Kurt would never beat or even come close to matching. So, the last thing on earth Kurt wants to do is disappoint Blaine by not remembering whatever anniversary or holiday they are meant to be celebrating tonight and showing up empty-handed.

Kurt searches his mind as he showers, hoping desperately that the hot water and steam will trigger some memory. He tries to think of other big moments Blaine might memorialize. It can't be the anniversary of the first time they had sex, because that was right after West Side Story which was McKinley's spring musical, sometime in March or April, not late August. It's also not the anniversary of their first date. Either it's the date of some really, really obscure first he had with Blaine long ago or Kurt's on the wrong track entirely. As he dresses and rushes out of the apartment, Kurt despairs that he's no closer to cracking Blaine's code than he was an hour ago. He just prays that his assistant will have a better memory than he does.

* * *

It turns out that Elizabeth, his perky, super organized assistant at Vogue is equally in the dark. A few flirty texts to Blaine attempting to tease some details about their evening plans out of him are similarly unhelpful, since he just keeps insisting that it's a surprise and won't say more than that. By the time 5 PM rolls around, Kurt is full-on panicking. At his wits end, he winds up Googling "August 28th holidays" in the vain hope that something relevant will pop up. The first few sites are no help, mainly listing religious observances that bear no real significance to himself or Blaine. Finally, he finds a site that has a short list of random holidays. He reads down the page, chuckling at the obscurity of some, like Crackers Over the Keyboard Day and National Cherry Turnovers Day.

He's almost to the end of the list when he reaches National Bow Tie Day.

 _Are you freaking kidding me,_ Kurt internally screams. _That's_ what he's been driving himself insane all day trying to remember? Kurt honestly can't decide if he should laugh or cry, so he winds up doing something in between and probably terrifying half the office because of how insane he sounds.

He has a short moment of doubt, wondering if he could possibly be wrong about what Blaine wants to celebrate. Maybe today's national holiday just happens to coincide with some relationship milestone that has more sentimental meaning? Kurt shakes off the thought; that would be one huge coincidence and if anyone was going to attach a ridiculous amount of sentiment to a fashion accessory, it's Blaine. No, this seems like just the sort of silly holiday (cynically designed for the sole purpose of exploiting consumers, he assumes) Blaine would insist on celebrating. Resolved, Kurt gathers his things and rushes out of the office. If he hurries, he should have time to swing by Brooks Brothers and still beat Blaine home.

* * *

"Welcome to Brooks Brothers, how can we help you today?" a salesman in a three-piece tailored suit greets Kurt as he rushes into the store.

"Where are your bow ties?" he asks hurriedly.

"Let me show you," the guy replies, leading him to a display towards the back of the store. The employee begins pointing out various colors and patterns to Kurt, but he finds himself only half listening. He just wants to pick something and get out of here as fast as he possibly can. The only thing giving him pause is trying to work out which bow ties Blaine won't have already. He could swear that Blaine spends more money on bow ties than Kurt does on shoes, which is _really_ saying something. The vast majority of Blaine's bow ties come from this very store, too.

As a result, it feels like a herculean task to choose correctly. "Which of these are your newest arrivals?" Kurt presses, realizing belatedly that he'd interrupted the salesguy's explanation of something or other. "Sorry, I'm kind of in a rush," he apologizes, not sure if that makes him sound better or worse.

"No worries," the employee replies and gestures to the center display rack. "All the ones on here just came in within the last week," he explains.

"Great, thanks," Kurt says and runs his fingers over a few of them. He sees a glint of gold from one near the bottom of the rack that catches his eye. The pattern is relatively simple, a classic navy, pink, and white striped fabric in matte silk. But what Kurt is really drawn to is the thick gold clasp that cinches it behind the neck. He picks it up, appreciating the heft of the chain and the way it's adjustable with several looping links. He imagines cinching it on the tightest setting around Blaine's throat, the fabric digging in just enough to remind Blaine of him all day. Blaine would have to wait until Kurt got home for help removing it and by that time he'd be desperate, whining to be fucked.

"Any other questions I can answer for you?" the salesperson asks suddenly. Kurt jerks in surprise, cheeks flushing red with embarrassment. He wonders if what he was thinking about is obvious just from the dazed, lustful look on his face.

"Uh, no... thanks, I'm good. I think I'll take this one," he manages.

"Great, if you want to follow me to the front counter, I'll have one of our associates ring you up!"

* * *

Kurt bursts into the apartment thirty-five minutes later, carrying a gift wrapped package from Brooks Brothers in one hand and takeout from Blaine's favorite neighborhood Thai restaurant in the other. "Sorry I'm late," he apologizes as he sets the food down on the counter and walks over to the couch, bending to give Blaine a kiss. "Did you have a good day?"

"I did, actually. You?" Blaine replies.

"More or less. Busy, but productive," Kurt hums. "I got you something," he announces proudly, handing Blaine the gift bag and sitting down beside him.

"Ooh, Brooks Brothers? My favorite," Blaine cheers. "I got you a little something too," he adds, producing a small, gift-wrapped box from behind a couch pillow. "Are you okay with doing presents first and then food?"

"Always. You know how I love presents," Kurt admits. "Go ahead, you first."

"If you insist," Blaine grins. He carefully unties the ribbon holding the gift bag closed and removes several sheets of tissue paper, rooting around until he finds the gift at the bottom. He pulls it out and his eyes light up as he turns the bow tie over in his hand. "Kurt, it's beautiful," he murmurs, stroking the fabric reverently.

"You like it? You don't have that one already, right?" Kurt checks. "I got a gift receipt just in case."

"No, I haven't even seen this one in the catalogue yet," Blaine swears. "It's perfect. _You're_ perfect."

"I'm glad you like it," Kurt beams back, pleased. "I especially like the clasp in the back."

"Me too. I have kind of a narrow neck and I bet it'll get pretty... tight," Blaine murmurs throatily. The way his cheeks and the tips of his ears redden along with the subtle increase in his breathing are clues enough that he's thinking along the same lines as Kurt had been earlier.

"Definitely. We might have to try it out a little later tonight?" Kurt suggests, trying for casual.

"Yes please," Blaine agrees immediately. "I have to confess, I wasn't sure you were even going to remember what today was. I know it's kind of a silly holiday to celebrate or get so into, but..."

"Hush, who could forget National Bow Tie Day?" Kurt interjects. "And it's not silly. Anything that's important to you is important to me too."

"You're the best," Blaine sighs happily, leaning in for a kiss. He pulls back, pressing his forehead to Kurt's. "Okay, your turn now," he proclaims, passing the small box over to his husband.

"So, I almost got you a bow tie too," he begins.

"Um, spoiler?" Kurt teases, laughing. "Should I wait to open it or...?" he checks, his finger already halfway under the seam in the wrapping paper.

"No no, go ahead," Blaine encourages. "And yeah, I know you wear bow ties sometimes still, but they are really more my thing than yours. Chances are that if I bought you a bow tie, I'd wind up wearing it more than you would, and that seemed kind of selfish of me. So, I looked at holidays for this month and turns out that August 1st was World Scarf Day."

"Oh yeah?" Kurt says as he rips the paper off the box, eyes lighting up at the familiar orange Hermès logo.

"Well, technically it was Scout Scarf Day, which I take is some sort of Boy Scouts' event, but eh, close enough," Blaine shrugs. "You can look now. I know the waiting must be killing you."

Kurt complies eagerly, opening the box to reveal an absolutely gorgeous silk printed scarf. "Blaine, oh my god," he gasps.

"Do you like it?" Blaine inquires, though the grin on his face makes it clear that he already knows the answer will be yes.

"Like it? I love it," Kurt squeals. "It's _stunning_. It must have cost a fortune, though?"

"Nah, it wasn't so bad. I ordered it online and got a pretty good deal," Blaine insists, waving off the concern.

"Thank you," Kurt exclaims, throwing his arms around Blaine's neck and tugging him close for a hug that quickly devolves into heated kisses, then a full-on making out session on the couch.

Twenty minutes later, both of their lips are tingling and practically numb from kissing so aggressively. They strip one another quickly and efficiently, leaving a trail of clothing in their wake as they continue to kiss and clumsily grope at one another all the way to their bed.

They wind up not leaving the bedroom for the rest of the night. They eat cold Pad Thai and spring rolls directly out of the takeout cartons in bed between rounds of passionate lovemaking.

The next morning when they meet friends for brunch, Blaine wears his new bow tie proudly. Kurt is also wearing his present from Blaine, which conveniently covers up the various hickeys that litter his neck from the activities of the previous evening. It was a _very_ good holiday, indeed.


End file.
